Enjoy the Silence
by Screeching Dragon
Summary: Sophie feels a tad bit neglected by Howl, but isn't all that put off by it. After all, she has a plan. Song fic


**Authors Note**: I seem to have made this some sort of theme, yea? That's ok. I like this theme. Let's me be creative with other people's ideas.

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Howl's Moving Castle. I don't own Depeche Mode. I don't own anything, but I do like this song.

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Howl was still very much a child at heart. Sophie could see that. She could also see the evident joy shining in his eyes every time he saw her. She was a friend to him, a confident, and his one true love. But as much as she loved Howl too, it was sometimes hard to put up with some of his more vain quirks. She smiled to herself at that. 'The man can keep himself spick and span, but doesn't care to keep his home clean.'

But seriously now, as cute as that may be, she really couldn't stand how he just up and left some times. She understood Howl being a work-a-holic when it came to magic and all, but this was a bit much. She decided some revenge was in order. "Howl, I'm going out." Howl looked very puzzled at that for a second. "We're not missing something, are we?"

"Maybe, but I really do need to go." She grinned up at him.

"Alright, do you want me to go with you? You know I hate it when you go out alone."

"I'll be fine, Howl. Don't worry. I'll be back with enough time to make supper." And with that, the knob turned to red and Sophie was gone.

Howl slumped forward a little bit in his chair; he DID hate it when she went out alone. He felt a pang of worry every time she walked through that door. There are bad men out there. Bad, bad, evil men who would take advantage of a girl like Sophie. It hurt him to hear her go off like that, even though he knew she would be home soon.

_Words like violence  
Break the silence  
Come crashing in  
Into my little world  
Painful to me  
Pierce right through me  
Can't you understand  
Oh my little girl_

Howl HAD really just been hoping for some cuddle time today, but he could see that would have to wait. Waiting is not a problem; the Wizard Pendragon could do so with ease.

_All I ever wanted  
All I ever needed  
Is here in my arms  
Words are very unnecessary  
They can only do harm_

It was almost dark outside and Sophie still wasn't back. Howl started to worry more than usual now. It wasn't like her to break a promise, intentional or not. "Calcifer, I'm going out to look for her. Please let Markl use you to cook?"

"Yea, yea whatever Howl. Just don't forget I'm a big and powerful fire daemon, ok?" Howl couldn't resist the smile that brought to his face. "Of course Calcifer, I could never forget that." The dial turned to red, and the door opened and shut again, this time leaving Calcifer alone. "Stupid Howl, taking him that long to go look for her," he muttered.

_Vows are spoken  
To be broken  
Feelings are intense  
Words are trivial  
Pleasures remain  
So does the pain  
Words are meaningless  
And forgettable_

Sophie was sitting calmly in the park watching the air ships fly over head in Kingsbury when Howl came running. "Oh thank goodness! I'd been looking all over for you." Sophie looked at his panicked blue eyes and started laughing. "You silly thing, Howl. I'd been waiting for you to follow me all day! I didn't think you'd actually let me out of the house alone like that. I wanted you to follow me. I thought it'd be nice to have some alone time. I really do like this city."

Howl smiled back at her, and knew he'd been duped for all it was worth, "Sorry love. I was a little slow on the uptake here. I promise we can have the evening off from all my work." And he ended it all with a hug. "Come on now, Sophie Hatter, let's go home."

_All I ever wanted  
All I ever needed  
Is here in my arms  
Words are very unnecessary  
They can only do harm_

An elderly couple saw a young pair walking down the streets that night and smiled at how sweetly they were treating each other. They didn't need to say anything to their counter part; they both knew that silence was golden, especially for lovers in love.

_Enjoy the silence_

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